


Emboldened

by Frogdays



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pocket Monsters: Sword & Shield | Pokemon Sword & Shield Versions
Genre: Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Injury, Mugging, Worldbuilding, Xenophobia
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-03
Updated: 2020-11-03
Packaged: 2021-03-08 18:02:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,011
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27370867
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Frogdays/pseuds/Frogdays
Summary: A cultural shift in Galar has created strife for a certain Gym Leader
Comments: 6
Kudos: 13





	Emboldened

Makeup could hide a lot of things. Zits, wrinkles, discoloration, scars; the stuff was practically magic if you knew how to use it right.

Giant bruises… those were tougher.

Nessa wiped around her right eye. She could rid the ugly purplish-red color easily enough, but the swelling had kicked in and her face looked a right mess regardless of foundation or cover-up. Not to mention the split on her eyebrow – isn’t that in fashion these days? – and the probably-broken nose she was aggravating. It wasn’t worth it. The last of the makeup washed away, leaving her eye injury exposed.

Everything hurt. The bathroom lights were too bright, and all that squinting did her injuries no favors. The inside of her mouth was scuffed up, scrapes from the pavement reddened her cheek, it stung, it all _stung,_ it—

The doorbell rang. Milo was early for dinner. Nessa quickly pondered her options, obviously makeup was out of the question. Sunglasses were too suspicious to be worn indoors, and at night. No matter what, he’d see the wounds. Next was to think of an excuse. Battling accident? Tripping? No, the injury most certainly looked like…

“You were hit,” Milo said. He didn’t even give Nessa the time to open her mouth. 

Nessa bit her lip, shifting back and forth on her heels.

“Gangs get you again?”

“I can handle myself!” Nessa snapped.

Milo was taken aback, but didn’t seem personally hurt. He put an arm around Nessa’s shoulders, and his face softened. “Least I could do is patch you up,” he offered, although it seemed more a friendly demand with how he began to gently push Nessa towards the kitchen table with that enormous hand of his.

Nausea hit Nessa the moment she sat down. Maybe it was the embarrassment, or maybe the relief of finally sitting after a half-hour of looking in the mirror. Maybe it was the punch to the gut that brought her down in the first place. ‘All of the above’ was certainly a possibility. As she was mulling it over, a cold pack was pressed against her eye.

“Hold it there.”

“Right.”

Milo briefly left to gather the medical supplies from the bathroom. It was so quick, no doubt he had memorized where they were by this point. Have these incidents really been _that_ frequent…?

“Third time in two months.” It was like he read her mind. 

Nessa didn’t respond.

He continued anyway. “Guess people have strong feelings about the Mega Evolution Act.”

“They’ve _always_ had strong feelings about Kalosian Practice,” Nessa said, exhausted just _thinking_ about the subject. “They’re just emboldened now that Mega Evolution is…”

“Outlawed.”

“Yeah.” 

Milo gave a sad smile. “For what it’s worth, I don’t see anything wrong with it. I think it’s cool! Just not my style.”

“Oh Milo, if only the government and the chairman shared your boundless enthusiasm and positivity,” Nessa half-deadpanned. “I thought Galar was past all this. Here I was, thinking my biggest fear should be balancing my careers.”

Silence hung in the room. Things were… _different_ now in such a big way. The few Kalosians and followers of the religion in Galar were used to the occasion rude social media comment or drunken jeer. But to villainize such an integral component of the culture _by law?_

“…I should be glad my grandparents never had to see this,” Nessa whispered. 

Milo lowered his tone to match. “Were they devout?”

“Lived in Shalour, five minute walk from the Tower of Mastery.”

“…I see”

A bandage was smoothed over a cut on Nessa’s cheek. “Figures I’d be stuck with their bloody last name.” She scowled. “I’m starting to feel sick every time I hear ‘Miss St. Louis’. I wish they wouldn’t even put it on my uniform.”

“Don’t say that—“

Nessa slammed the cold pack on the table and stood up. “What choice do I have? You have it easy, _Mister Bradford._ You don’t get told your culture is an _affront to Arceus_ or the way of _barbarians!_ You don’t get jumped by gangs in _your own city!_ You—you don’t—“

“Ness, you’re hyperventilating. Deep breaths now, come on.”

Nessa stopped herself, trying to relax and do as told. Her head was pounding now. Definitely just from the emotional strain… she hoped. “Can you get me some water?”

Milo poured her a glass of wine. He knew her too well.

That at least put a hint of a smile on the woman’s face. “You know what they said to me this time?”

“Hmm… ‘get out of Hulbury, you Pokémon-torturing savage?’”

“Nice impression, but no. Today it was ‘we don’t need shit like you as the face of our town’, followed up by a kick to the head.” Nessa sipped her wine, looking down into the red drink. “And some… nastier things. I don’t know…”

Milo reached up gently ran his hand through Nessa’s long, soft hair. Nessa leaned into the touch, only to quickly wince and pull away.

“I’m taking you to the hospital.” Milo’s voice was stern.

“It’s not worth the publicity.”

“There’s _a bump on your skull,_ Nessa.”

Biting her lip, Nessa turned away and raised her hand to her own head, feeling for the bump. Oh, it was a big one alright. Guess that explained the headache.

“How’d you even get home?”

It was tough to remember, but easy enough to piece together. Nessa had left the café and parted ways with Sonia, and was attacked as she rounded the corner, too quick for her to even reach for a Pokéball. At some point she blacked out, but Sonia found her and helped her home.

“Was Sonia hurt?” Milo asked.

Nessa breathed out a sigh of relief. “She’s fine, thank the lords." That, at least, she could rest easy about. Sonia was as purebred Galarian as it got, what with that red hair of hers. “Drednaw’s fine, too.”

The two began to walk towards Milo’s car. “Might want to watch out who you thank there,” he mused.

“I’ll thank who I please.”

“Stubborn as ever, aren’t you, Ness…”

**Author's Note:**

> I enjoy pokemon worldbuilding with my friends, and here's the result of my latest crackpot headcanon. Hope you enjoyed!


End file.
